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Music Mondays

Considering my last Music Monday post was about two bands I had only just been introduced to, this week I decided to do a throwback to a few years ago, to two bands which really inspired me.

The first one is We Are The Ocean. Now this band, when I first heard them, were really beginning to improve their following and I immediately took a liking to their music. Since then they have played at god knows how many festivals, were on the BBC playlist with their album Go Now and Live. They have now had a change in vocals, but their old music is still around and as amazing as ever. Check out my favourite Young Heart here:

The other band that I obsessed over a few years ago was Young Guns. I physically cannot express my love for this band enough. Their melodies, their lyrics, their music videos, it will all give you the tingles. So definitely go check them out! It was difficult for me to choose my favourite song by them so I’ll link one, but take a look at Crystal Clear, Bones and Weight of the World.

So a week ago now I had the privilege of interviewing two up and coming Indie Rock bands, Fickle Friends and Clean Cut Kid. If you saw my last post, a review on their gig, you’ll know I loved their music and really enjoyed seeing them play. Well, here comes the follow up to that, my interview with both bands which I actually did just before their gig. Hopefully this will give you an insight into the bands and, for me, definitely made me enjoy the music more, because I knew the inspiration behind it and hard work and perseverance needed by the bands to reach this point.

What’s Your Story?

Fickle Friends

We all met at university in Brighton, 3 or 4 years ago. Nattie started the band originally and there were a couple of replacements and that’s how it really started.

Clean Cut Kid

We started as a three-piece, not playing any gigs, but we wrote and recorded songs, including Vitamin C and Runaway, our first two singles. Then Ross joined us and spent between 9 months to a year just rehearsing under wraps. Our first gig was really secretive, we did it under a false name and everything, but it still leaked somehow. Our next gig sold out in an hour and we had 5 major record labels at the gig. It seemed to explode overnight!

Fickle Friends – Photo by Jess Glendenning

Who Are Your Musical And Non-Musical Influences?

Fickle Friends

Michael Jackson, a lot of 80s stuff, like Daft Punk, Phoenix, Bombay Bicycle Club. Wes Andersen films and other 80s films really influenced us, which is appropriate because they experimented so much then with their sound and that’s exactly what we try and do.

Clean Cut Kid

Bowie, obviously. Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel, Fleetwood Mac and Vampire Weekend. Wes Andersen , a lot of other film references, I guess. Back to the Future, definitely.

Fickle Friends – Photo by Jess Glendenning

What Are Your Practice Sessions Like?

Fickle Friends

Pretty chilled. We work hard but we like a long tea break! It’s been a bit more manic recently because we don’t have much time to do anything.

Clean Cut Kid

Cold! We’ve got a great room, but it’s rundown, the windows don’t really close, but we like that because it’s like a garage band set-up. You can just about hear yourself sing, but then as soon as you get on stage and the monitoring actually works it’s like a breath of fresh air. We’ve really made it our own and we wouldn’t change it!

Clean Cut Kid – Photo by Jess Glendenning

What Have You Got Planned For 2016?

Fickle Friends

We’re going to Texas and LA to do some recording. Coming back to record our album. Then Festival season and after head out to New York. The world is our oyster. Our confirmed festivals at the moment are Bestival, Reading and Leeds, Field Day, the whole group, even some in Europe.

Clean Cut Kid

So many Festivals! It’s all laid out! A week of touring, then a week of recording, then another week of touring. Then we’re going to South West, South West, then we’ve got a load of random things, like a headline in London, some up in Liverpool, like Record Day. In May we’re finishing the record off and next single will be released. Then we’ll be doing the whole of festival season. We’re doing Reading and Leeds, Secret Garden Party and even, Lee Fest.

Fickle Friends – Photo by Jess Glendenning

What’s The Best Bit About Touring?

Fickle Friends

Getting to meet the fans. The more gigs we play, the more fans we get and it’s just really nice to see them go for it and really enjoy it!

Clean Cut Kid

It’s like you’re on holiday! Our tour manager probably doesn’t agree, but to us it just feels like a holiday with all your mates.

Clean Cut Kid – Photo by Jess Glendenning

And The Worst Bit?

Fickle Friends

The boredom! There’s so much waiting around! It’s about 95% waiting around and 5% playing. We do the best job in the world though and we do stuff in between. Harry’s been learning French and Sam’s been learning Spanish.

Clean Cut Kid

Right at the end when it’s the last gig and you realise you have take all the gear back up the three flights of stairs to our rehearsal room! Also, however hard you try you can never take enough pants.

Fickle Friends – Photo by Jess Glendenning

What Music Are You Currently Listening To?

Fickle Friends

Bombay Bicycle Club, because we love how they do things. They are such a good band. Jack Garrett, the 1975, all sorts really.

Clean Cut Kid

Honestly, a lot of Fickle Friends! Conner Youngblood, Flyte, Lying B*stards and Courtney Barnett as well. A lot of the talent is so raw and pure.

Fickle Friends and Clean Cut Kid are both bands that, through their hard work and perseverance over the years, have started to make it big in the music industry. With plays across national stations, acknowledgement on the BBC introducing list and gigs at festivals including Reading and Leeds, both bands are living their dream.

Now I‘ll admit, I had heard of both bands vaguely but hadn’t really started listening to their music until this opportunity arose, so I went along to see them perform at an intimate gig in Joiners, Southampton. It’s safe to say I’m converted. Fickle Friends and Clean Cut Kid are both unique bands that are so enthusiastic about their music that their energy becomes infectious and you can’t help but sing and dance along too.

Howland, an up and coming band of three from Brighton, kicked off the show with their indie rock ‘n’ roll style, riling up the crowd ready for the bands to follow. Playing some new music and one song that they’d written that day (!) they set the atmosphere for the evening, building up to Clean Cut Kid and the Fickle Friends.

Clean Cut Kid rocked the stage, performing not only their favourites, including Vitamin C (a definite crowd-pleaser) and Make Believe, but also their newest single Pick Me Up. It is obvious in every song and throughout their set how much they love performing and how aware they are that they are living the dream! This band you MUST see live, even if you aren’t into indie music, you’ll love the atmosphere and their tunes.

Fickle Friends opened with Say No More and received the reception they were looking for when Nattie, lead vocalist, said it was the ‘rowdiest start to a show so far this tour’! (Southampton, memorable as always). Their energy on stage made their performance phenomenal as they got their audience dancing and singing with them. Unfortunately, they experienced technical difficulties with cables whilst on stage and I feel this may have slightly affected their performance, even though it was out of their hands and nothing to be done about it. However, they kept it together and after a short pause whilst there was an attempt to fix it, they continued regardless. This didn’t affect the atmosphere much as the crowd continued to have a conversation with Nattie on stage, during this unexpected interval.

Fickle Friends and Clean Cut Kid are a musical match made in Heaven, excuse the cliché! The Daft Punk-like style and ball of energy that are Fickle Friends contrasts, yet compliments the enthusiasm and sheer tunes that make up Clean Cut Kid.

Since I went to a music gig locally on Friday and I still have 5 minutes (I know it’s half past now, I had trouble with the videos) until it’s technically Tuesday, I thought I’d quickly put up a music Monday where I will show you the music I’m currently listening to.

Due to the gig on Friday for Clean Cut Kid and Fickle Friends, it’s safe to say that for the build up and aftermath I have spent a lot of time listening to both of them. For me though Clean Cut Kid are really the sort of music I enjoy listening to with a whole new level of uniqueness. My favourite song by them is Vitamin C (I’ll link it below). They are such an energetic band that are so obviously loving every moment at the minute, so definitely check them out!

Also check out Fickle Friends. They’re a Brighton band that have been around for a few years and are really starting to hit it big now. Definitely worth a listen! Both of these are indie bands and both are up and coming, so keep an eye out for them!

Keep an eye out for my review of the gig and interviews with both bands, still to come!